Parashat Devarim is the beginning of the last (fifth) book of the Torah. Moses reviews the history of the wandering in the desert as he prepares to say goodbye to our people, a journey that should have taken 11 days, but instead took 40 years! A selection from this week's Haftarah encapsulates a reminder of what Moses taught our ancestors during their desert years, precious values deeply embedded into the Jewish psyche:

Cease to do evil

Learn to do good

Devote yourselves to justice

Aid those who are wronged

                       (Isaiah 1:16-17)

A kavannah for candle lighting for Shabbat Devarim:

As I prepare to light the Shabbat candles, may the gift of this Shabbat renew and restore my energy and my soul so that I might embark on the wondrous journey of the new week that lies ahead. May the words I speak be rooted in love and caring for my family, my community and myself, rooted in the miraculous journey of life itself!